A Pirates Life for Me
by Dreamwalker95
Summary: The sea is a strange place, there's no doubting that. Kris Kuris finds this out for herself and with a little help from a certain Sparrow can she survive the weird and wonderful life of a pirate? OC story, girl/girl pairings so if you don't like it please don't read, or just skip those bits M rated for various reasons... Mostly paranoia...
1. Introduction: Cabin Boy

_**Right, hi, welcome to my Pirates of the Caribbean fanifc. I'm not sure I'm happy with this quick introduction so I'll probably re-write it at some point but for now I hope you enjoy ^_^ (oh and sorry for the cliche title XD )  
Discalimer: I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean, in any way shape or form, I only own my own characters that I added in.**_

_**Introduction: Cabin Boy**_

The bruises were already starting to show from earlier that day, her ribs were peppered with purple smudges that mixed in with the older ones from the last time. She couldn't even remember why it had happened this time, or the many times before. The only thing that ever made sense was that it was that he blamed her for everything that had happened. With a heavy sigh she curled up on the blanket that passed for her bed and images of her mother passed through her head. She'd been beautiful, weird golden brown eyes like her own but her hair had been black rather than the light brown she'd gotten from her father. As though thinking about him made him appear, the door to her left slammed open and he stumbled in. He was drunk. Again. A tremor of fear ran through her as his eyes found her and she thought about running but couldn't make herself move.  
"You! I told you to get out!" He stumbled towards her and a heavy hand grabbed the front of her gray baggy shirt. It used to be white but hadn't been washed properly since she got it. She closed her eyes tightly and bit down on her lip to keep quiet as the first hits rained down upon her. It had happened too often for it to really hurt anymore.

The next morning he was still passed out, his body still trying to recover from the amount of cheap ale he'd drank at the tavern the night before. Something shiny in his hand caught her eye and she blinked in surprise. It was her mother's pendant; she'd heard him laughing with a friend the other day about how much money it would sell for but she didn't want him to sell it. It was the only thing her mother had left her when she died and she refused to let him waste it for money he'd spend on more drink. Biting her lip in concentration she took it carefully and pulled very slowly, sliding the leather string out of his hand a little at a time until it finally came all that way out. It was a long cord so she had to wrap it around her neck a few times to keep it close to her throat but as she was tying the knot she heard a loud grunt behind her.  
"Hey! You thieving..." He started to get up and panic wiped her mind blank. Without thinking she bolted, her small legs moving faster than she dreamed possible. Her bare feet hit the muddy streets of Tortuga hard as she sprinted away from her home, weaving through the light crowds and listening for the shouts of her father behind her over the pounding of her heart beat. Eventually the smell of salt hit her like a wall and the ocean was before her. The wooden planks of the dock creaked beneath her feet and she saw a ramp leading onto a ship. Before her father could catch up she dashed on board and hid behind some sacks, watching the man looking around for her from her hiding place while she fought to catch her breath. Slowly, her heart calmed down and she could hear properly again, her breathing also slowed as she watched him give up and storm back off toward the house. Cautiously, she stood up and started walking back towards the ramp, not wanting to be caught as a stowaway. A quick glance behind her to make sure she was alone resulted in a headlong collision with someone's chest.  
"Watch where you're goin' lad." She looked up at the man looking down at her and had to concentrate to take in his strange appearance. He had a moustache and a beard that was braided into two plaits, his eyes were outlined with some black substance and he had a sailors hat perched on top of his head with dark brown dreadlocks coming from underneath. She was so distracted by his appearance that she failed to notice he was speaking.  
"I said, what are you doing on my ship?" He sounded annoyed and she blinked.  
"I... erm..." She glanced around, trying to think of a reason but nothing came to mind.  
"Are you lookin' to join me crew?" He arched an eyebrow and the idea suddenly seemed like a brilliant one, she nodded vigorously.  
"Well, I was lookin' for a new cabin boy. We leave within the hour." With that he gave a small smile and sauntered off to what she guessed was his cabin. She stood for a minute and tried to figure out what just happened, apparently she'd just become a member of that man's crew... As a boy... It could be worse; he could have called her a stowaway and had her taken away by the police. She decided for now it would be best to stay on this ship, maybe get off the next time they docked and start a life somewhere.

A man walked past her and paused for a second before coming back.  
"You alright lad?" He looked at her with concern on his face and she almost sighed at being called a boy by the second person today. Then again, it was probably a good thing for now.  
"Yeah, I was er... Just wondering what I was supposed to do..." She ran a hand awkwardly through her short hair and the man smiled at her.  
"Jack's new cabin boy huh? He never remembers to tell them what they're doin'. What's yer name lad?" He chuckled then looked at her expectantly.  
"Kristin- Kris. Kris Kuris." She stammered over saying 'Kristine' but left it at that, he nodded to himself and held out a hand.  
"Jim Bones." He smiled kindly and she shook his hand, he looked surprised for a second then laughed as he let go.  
"Yer hands ain't goin' to stay that soft once ye start workin' Kris. And ye might want to get yerself a decent pair of boots. Splinters ain't nothin' to laugh about." He indicated to her bare feet and she looked down, embarrassment washing over her.  
"I er... Don't have any money." She rubbed the back of her neck self consciously and looked back up to see him trying to hold in laughter.  
"Ye may not have noticed lad but this ain't the royal navy. If ye need boots, go get 'em. Just don't get caught. Hurry up though, we leave in the hour." He gave her one last amused glance before walking off after the man she now knew was called Jack. She bit her lip gently before nodding to herself, she'd already become a thief once today, she may as well make it twice. With determination she walked off of the ship, heading for the market.

Getting the boots was surprisingly easy, she hid beneath a stall and slipped them under with her, pulling them on and waiting for a little while before sneaking back out and wandering off up the street. When she made it back up onto the ship she was wandering aimlessly around when Jack called her over.  
"Oi! Lad!" She resisted the urge to roll her eyes at being called a boy again but walked over anyway.  
"Yes?" She shoved her hands into the pockets of her baggy brown breeches and he frowned at her.  
"'m the Captain here lad, so you should call me Captain or Captain Sparrow, got it?" He folded his arms across his chest in an oddly childish way and she nodded once.  
"Yes, Captain." She gave a small apologetic smile. So her new captain was Captain Jack Sparrow... With an approving nod he started talking again.  
"Jim tells me you don't know much about bein' a cabin boy. You better be a fast learner, I have little patience to be teaching whelps. Your job is to keep me cabin clean and help the crew out with their jobs a bit by fetchin' things for them and such. That clear enough for you?" He was clearly making fun of her but she made herself hold back a retort.  
"Got it, sir." She nodded and he made a shooing gesture with his hands.  
"Hop to it then lad." He turned back to another man and started talking about something so she walked away and started looking around the ship, she guessed taking forever to find everything while they were at sea would end badly so she decided to figure it all out sooner rather than later.

Her first day on the ship was hell; she felt sick all the time and couldn't walk straight. Eventually she had to run out in the middle of scrubbing the cabin's floor and throw up over a railing. When she'd finally emptied her stomach, not that there was much in it, she pulled herself upright and ran her hands through her hair.  
"Not got your sea legs yet then lad?" A voice to her right made her jump and she turned around to see the captain leaning against the railing beside her, drinking something from a bottle.  
"Never been at sea before. Sir." She had to add the word on quickly as she almost forgot. He chuckled and held out the bottle he was drinking from.  
"You need a good sleep. Drink some of this." He tilted the neck towards her and she hesitated for a second before taking it. The smell of alcohol hit her like a wave and she instantly held the bottle back out towards him, cringing away from the smell. He looked puzzled but took it back while she threw up over the railings again. The smell of alcohol always had this effect on her; she was so used to relating it to her father. When she finally looked back to Sparrow he looked a little worried.  
"Y'alright lad?" He kept the bottle away from her now, clearly figuring out it was what had set her off again.  
"Yeah, sorry... I er... Just don't do well with alcohol..." She rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly and he frowned slightly.  
"Wouldn't be something to do with the man chasin' ye when you came aboard me ship would it?" He took a sip himself and she blinked in surprise. Was that why he'd let her stay?  
"Yeah... That would be my father." She scowled at the water at the thought of him and Sparrow gave a knowing nod.  
"I see. Well, you're part of me crew now lad. I like t' think no-one'll do ye harm unless you start it. So just mind yerself and you'll be fine." He gave her a hard pat on the back, directly on a bruise she had from the day before and she yelped in pain. He flinched and looked alarmed.  
"Didn't hit ye that hard lad." Confusion covered his face and Kris shook her head.  
"Sorry, just er... Caught me on a bruise..." She muttered the last part and looked back over the railing. He frowned at her for a second before speaking.  
"I jus' decided I don't like yer dad." He nodded to himself and gave her a second pat on the shoulder, much lighter this time.  
"Well, you can't stand out here all night lad. Finish up with me floor and ye can get some sleep." He gave a quick wink and strode off to his cabin, leaving her stood alone for a few seconds before the cold air finally got to her and she hurried back inside. A man Kris had learnt was called Hector Barbossa joined Sparrow looking at the charts on his desk while she finished cleaning the floor and when she was done she felt a little awkward interrupting them.  
"Er... Captain..." She spoke quietly but they both looked up.  
"Yes lad?" Jack didn't seem bothered but Barbossa was glaring at her, something that was a little more than scary from that man in particular. Everything about him seemed to radiate menace, a sharp contrast to the happy-go-lucky atmosphere that seemed to follow Sparrow around.  
"I was wondering... Where do I sleep?" She stuck her hands in her pockets self consciously and Sparrow looked amused while Barbossa rolled his eyes.  
"Over there." He nodded to a blanket on the floor in the corner and she looked at it with a small smile. Her sleeping arrangements weren't too much of a dramatic change then. She turned back to him and nodded.  
"G'night then captain." She gave a small smile and turned to walk towards her 'bed' but was stopped by Barbossa.  
"What be yer name lad?" His gravelly tone was suspicious and she turned to face him, trying to remain calm under his glare.  
"Kris Kuris, sir..." She wasn't sure how to address a first mate so she went with 'sir', it seemed to work with everyone else.  
"And how old are ye?" His glare didn't let up and she looked to Sparrow to try and figure out what was going on. He was looking as confused as she was.  
"Fourteen... Sir..." She was getting more confused by the second, why did he want to know?  
"Yer mother. Who was she?" He fixed his eyes onto hers and she blinked a few times in confusion.  
"Her name was Helena sir... Helena Berner..." She shared a confused look with Sparrow as Barbossa burst out laughing.  
"Care to enlighten us Hector?" Sparrow asked before she could and the man stopped cackling long enough to explain.  
"Yer mother was a good pirate lad. Shame she was tied down by that Kuris whelp. Why'd you leave her behind?" Confusion crossed his features and she looked down.  
"She died when I was seven, sir." She looked back up to find Sparrow looking sad and Barbossa looking thoughtful.  
"Tis a shame. Now, to bed with ye." He turned back to the charts and she nodded once, turning and walking the rest of the way to her bed. Her mother had been a pirate? She knew she'd travelled from the stories she used to tell, but she never knew she'd been on a ship like this. She curled up on the blanket with her back to the men and let a small smile creep onto her face. Who would have guessed she would end up the same?

_**Okay, there it is, chapter one will be up within the next few days...**_


	2. Chapter 1: Year One

_**Disclaimer: I only own my own additions, not anything/one from Pirates of the Caribben.**_

_**Well I hope you liked the introduction, this is going to be a reasonably long fanfic...**_

_**Chapter One: Year one**_

The next year flew by; she learnt quickly how to help out various crewmembers and even Barbossa seemed to warm to her in the first couple of months. One day he caught her playing with a sword in the store room and decided she needed to learn how to use one properly. From that day on they had lessons every couple of days on deck that a lot of the crew found to be hilarious, though she picked up the skill quickly so eventually they all lost interest when she stopped tripping over her own feet every five minutes. She found she actually kind of liked it, a strange thing given she'd never fought with anyone in her life but there was something cool about it. Even Barbossa seemed a little impressed by how fast she picked it up, so much so that he started spending some time during the lesson breaks telling her about the time he knew her mother. To her relief he only knew her as a friend, no offence to the man but that would have made everything awkward. As it turned out she'd sailed with him back when he was Quartermaster on the Nemesis, apparently she'd been brilliant with a sword though a terrible shot when it came to pistols. She could shoot someone when it came to it but long distance and small targets caused her real problems. He'd told her a couple of funny stories about times she'd messed up and ended them up in weird situations.  
"Kris!" Sparrow shouted her from his cabin door and she spun around.  
"Aye Captain?" She shouted back without thinking and smiled slightly that she sounded more and more like the rest of the crew every day.  
"You have a floor to clean!" She looked up at the sun and saw that it was later than she thought.  
"Okay. Thanks for the lesson." She smiled at Barbossa who nodded back before dashing off to the galley to get a bucket of water and the brush.

She was finishing up on the floor when Sparrow looked over at her with a slight frown.  
"You really fourteen lad?" He scowled at her slightly and she walked to the window to throw the dirty water out of it.  
"Aye, I'm fifteen in... Two days. Why?" She put the bucket down and turned to him with her arms folded across her chest, a little surprised that the time had flown by quite so fast.  
"You have no meat on you, I'd have guessed twelve." He grinned and she flexed her arms experimentally, frowning slightly, she had gained quite a bit of muscle over the past year, for a girl at least... Oh right...  
"Well at least I can walk in a straight line, unlike some." She grinned back and resisted the urge to stick out her tongue.  
"Can too!" He stood up and stepped carefully, holding his arms out and placing one boot precisely in front of the other. He flashed a grin over to her and she picked up a pillow from his bunk and threw it at his head, knocking him off balance.  
"Hey!" He threw the pillow back and Kris caught it, throwing it back onto the bed with a wink.  
"Told you." She grinned and took the bucket over to the door, dropping the brush inside.  
"Bloody pirate." Sparrow smirked and she turned to give an overly theatrical bow and a wink.  
"Thank ye, Jack." She did her best impersonation of Barbossa's gravelly tone and Sparrow laughed.  
"Go get me dinner, cheeky git." Despite her making fun of his first mate he couldn't help but grin and Kris nodded.  
"Aye Captain." With that she turned on her heel and left. It was hard to believe she'd once been scared of the men on this ship; even Barbossa was a friendly face to her now. It was even more difficult to think that she once thought she'd be leaving at the first port. They'd arrived in India a month or so after she joined the crew but she had been so overwhelmed by everything going on around them that she found herself staying two steps behind Sparrow at all times. Though there was the issue of still pretending to be a boy, she wasn't stupid, she knew that pretty soon she'd be looking more female and there was no way she could stop herself from that. Maybe when she turns sixteen she'll tell them... Then again, she'd never seen another woman pirate on this ship, she couldn't figure out why, maybe she should ask Barbossa next time they're talking.

She made it down to the galley and found everyone sat around talking and laughing.  
"Hey Kris! Pass that cloth would ye." Jim shouted her from where he was sat with Ragetti and she picked up the cloth. As she walked over she saw that he was holding a needle through Ragetti's ear.  
"What are you doing?" She leant against a beam while she watched him pull the needle out and hold the cloth to it for a second to catch the blood.  
"Piercing his ear, lad, loads of the crew have it." He took the cloth away and pushed a silver ring through the new hole, closing the clasp with a little difficulty.  
"Keep it clean for a few days and it'll be fine." He stepped away and Kris found herself looking at the ring with interest. The bit he'd stuck it through looked a little sore but aside from that she thought it looked really cool. Ragetti grinned when he saw her looking and slapped a hand onto her shoulder.  
"Reckon you'll get one yerself boy?" He grinned and Kris laughed.  
"Don't know, maybe." She grinned and walked back toward the large pot full of broth, picking up two bowls and filling them up.  
"I'll do it for you now if you want lad." Jim looked up from his own food and Kris was tempted to take him up on the offer, unfortunately Sparrow got grumpy as hell when he was hungry and so did Barbossa who was waiting for his dinner at the helm.  
"I've got to get dinner to the Captain and Barbossa. Later maybe." She put the bowls onto a tray and put some bread next to them before turning to leave.  
"We'll hold you to it lad." Ragetti grinned at her and she smirked back before heading up to the deck.  
"There ye are lad, took your time." Sparrow scowled slightly but cheered up as she put the bowl in front of him.  
"Sorry, Jim was piercing Ragetti's ear and I got distracted." She put the bread next to his bowl and Sparrow picked it up, biting a chunk out of it with a grin.  
"Sight of the blood send you running to the railing?" He chuckled and she scowled slightly.  
"Nope, thought it looked pretty good actually, Jim offered to do mine for me." She grinned and took the tray to the door.  
"But I have to go give food to a hungry first mate. Enjoy your dinner Captain." They shared a brief grin before she walked out onto deck and up the stairs to the helm.  
"Dinner, sir." She set the tray down and Barbossa gave a slight smile.  
"Cheers lad, hold 'er steady for me." He stepped back from the wheel but held onto it gesturing for her to take it. She stepped forward but hesitated for a second, Barbossa chuckled at the hesitation and grabbed her shoulder, pulling her forward so she was stood in front of the wheel.  
"It's not hard lad, just hold it still." He let go and she quickly put her hand where his had been. He smirked slightly and leant against the railing while he started to eat.  
"See? Nothin' to it. Might ask Jack if ye could learn the ropes of sailin' now yer gettin' a bit older. It's 'bout time ye learnt t' be a proper pirate." He chuckled as she couldn't help the slight feeling of pride that washed over her and clearly resulted in a stupid grin becoming stuck on her face.

The next day Jack called her over to the helm when she'd finished mopping the deck and started to teach her the basics. She couldn't help the slight grin that pulled onto her face when he told her she'd picked it up quickly and that grin stayed with her all the way through the rest of her chores and sword practice with Barbossa. To her disappointment, no-one mentioned the piercing at dinner so she ate with Jim and Bill and asked them exactly where they were going.  
"Jack's received word from Tia Dalma so we're headed to see her." Bill answered casually but Kris frowned slightly.  
"Who's Tia Dalma?" She bit a chunk off of her bread and Bill as Jim shared a strange look.  
"She's... Well... Best for you to see for yerself lad." Jim quickly busied himself with taking a long drink from his flask Bill seemed engrossed in his food so she guessed that was the end of the conversation. She said no more on the subject and eventually everyone headed off to bed. Kris curled up on her blanket and realised that tomorrow she would be fifteen. What a strange year it had been. The next day when she woke up Sparrow was already eating his breakfast.  
"You should have woken me up if I'm late Captain." She frowned slightly and he shrugged.  
"Didn't want to wake you lad, go get yourself somethin' to eat, Twigg caught some fish on watch last night." He waved her away and Kris couldn't help being confused. What was going on? She made it down to the galley and found a decent sized bowl left in the pot for once, along with a middle bit of bread rather than her usual solid end bit. The weirdest thing was that no-one was talking to her; no-one had said good morning like they usually did and the galley itself was practically empty. She ate alone, enjoying having something other than vegetables in the broth for the first time in months, before heading up on deck to find Pintel and Ragetti doing her job of mopping the deck.  
"Hey, what's going on?" They looked up as she spoke with slight smiles on their faces.  
"Captain's orders lad, you're on helm today." Pintel pointed up to the helm where Bill was currently stood and she blinked in surprise. She'd had about an hour's practice with Sparrow but apparently he saw her as good enough for a whole shift? She walked slowly up to Bill who smiled kindly.  
"We're just going steady for now but Barbossa'll be along in a while with orders." He stepped to the side and she placed a hand on the dark wood of the wheel. Her hand shaking a little as he grinned at her.  
"You'll do fine." With that he left her to it and she fought to relax herself a bit, helm shifts were long and unless there was a sudden maelstrom or something she wasn't going to be relived early.

Once she relaxed she couldn't help but feel a little proud stood up here, her mind wandered to her future and she let the image of herself stood at the helm of her own ship, dressed like a captain and shouting orders to her crew. A voice broke her out of her thoughts and she turned to see Barbossa leaning against the railings.  
"Having fun, boy?" He gave a quiet laugh and walked over to make sure she did exactly what he said while he told her how to adjust course. When it was done he actually gave a small smile.  
"Jack was right, you are pickin' it up fast." He slapped a hand onto her shoulder before turning to walk away.  
"When yer shift's over come find me, we've not had a lesson in a while. Keep her steady." He added the last bit as he walked down the stairs and she let a small smile come onto her face. Even though no-one knew it was her birthday, or were trying to celebrate it, she couldn't help but feel like this was the best one she'd had in her life.

When Joe came up to take his turn at the helm she headed down onto deck where Barbossa was talking to Ragetti about something.  
"Ah, ready then boy?" Barbossa looked up as she approached and she nodded.  
"Right, take this then." He held out a sword still in its scabbard and she took it.  
"Attach it to yer belt, it's about time ye had yer own. Now we're sure ye won't take yer own eye out." He grinned and she beamed as she tied it securely to her belt.  
"Right then. Let's see if ye can beat Ragetti." He nodded to the man beside him who grinned and drew his sword before stepping forward. She saw the other men nudge one and other and turn to watch as they walked into the middle of the deck. She drew her sword and flexed her grip on it slightly, making sure she wasn't going to drop it like she had so many times at the start of her practice.  
"Ready boy?" Ragetti had a sort of look about him that told her he wasn't about to go easy on her and she grinned in return.  
"Are you?" She gave a mischievous smirk and saw Jack standing at the door of his cabin to watch. She could hear some of the men placing bets but her attention was quickly captured as Ragetti took the first step forward, trying to catch her arm while she wasn't looking, she side stepped and quickly moved to knock his sword from his hand. He brought his own sword around to block her and grinned.  
"Not bad for a kid." He chuckled and Kris grinned.  
"Speak for yourself." She stuck her tongue out and stepped back, moving quickly around to his other side and attacking again. Minutes flew by and the crowd around them got more and more enthusiastic as the fight grew more intense, Ragetti's grin was long gone but Kris could help the smirk that stayed curving the edges of her lips as she blocked another of his attacks and almost succeeded in knocking his sword away. He growled in annoyance and tried to sweep his foot under hers and knock her over but she took the opportunity to dodge around, and land a kick squarely to his chest, knocking him onto his butt before sending his sword flying from his hand and pointing her blade under his chin with a, none too subtle, triumphant grin. Cheers and groans of annoyance echoed around them and she turned to see Sparrow tilt the edge of his hat slightly with a small smile. She nodded back and slid her sword away, holding a hand out to help Ragetti up with a slight apologetic smile. He took it and gave a brief nod before going to retrieve his sword.  
"Well done boy, now go help Bo'sun." He nodded toward the galley and she nodded before turning and walking away, feeling more than a little proud of herself.

Much later she walked down from deck with Bill to find a few of the crew sat in the galley, including Sparrow and Barbossa.  
"Happy birthday lad!" Sparrow stood in the centre of the room and held his arms out wide as cheers of happy birthday echoed around him. She couldn't help but beam at the sight of everyone gathered together for her birthday, though she suspected most of them were only there for the inevitable increased rum ration but it still made her happy.  
"Now, Kris, sit down, take this." He pointed to a stool next to Jim and held out a bottle of rum, she sat but took the bottle hesitantly and gave him a confused look.  
"Yer goin' to need it boy." Barbossa gave a slightly unnerving mischievous grin from across the galley and Jim walked over with a needle and cloth.  
"You said you wanted your ear piercing, so we're goin' to do it." He smiled and she pulled the cork from the bottle, surprised when no wave of illness came up to great her at the smell. Apparently a year at sea had helped.  
"Cheers." She held the bottle up for a second and took a big drink, choking on the burning liquid slightly as she swallowed but other than that she was fine. Jack gave an approving grin and sat down across from her while everyone else started drinking and one of the other crewmembers started playing guitar. It felt like she was back in the Faithful Bride in Tortuga and she smiled slightly to herself before turning to Jim.  
"How much is this going to hurt?" She gave a slightly sheepish smile and he chuckled.  
"Keep drinking and you'll barely notice lad." He took out the needle and started re-cleaning it and she took his advice, taking another large gulp of rum and feeling a little proud when she managed to get it down without choking. A few minutes later Jim was ready with the needle and she can already feel the alcohol going to her head.  
"Ready?" He takes a swig from his own bottle and looks at her carefully.  
"Yeah." She puts the bottle down and grips the beam to her right with one hand, gritting her teeth. As the needle is pushed through, her slightly foggy mind cleared up dramatically and she channelled all the pain into her right hand so that her knuckles turned white gripping the beam rather than crying out or flinching. Jim smiled warmly at her and chuckled.  
"Almost over lad." He pulled the needle out and placed the cloth over the hole for a second to stop the blood before pushing a silver ring into it and clasping it shut.  
"There you go." He sounded quite pleased with himself as he turned to clean his needle and Kris put a slightly shaky hand to her ear, wincing slightly as she touched the cool metal and her ear throbbed in response. She turned and grinned at Jim, placing a hand onto his shoulder.  
"Thanks." She gave a small smile before turning so that her back was against the beam and taking a slightly smaller sip of rum. Now the pain had dulled to a slight ache the haze was starting to spread through her mind again, it was oddly relaxing.

She had no idea how much time had passed but she found herself in a strange conversation with Jack, Barbossa and Jim.  
"So why aren't there many girl pirates about? Like my mother." She directed her question to all three but Jim was the first to answer.  
"S'bad luck to have a woman aboard." He took a long drink from her bottle and she scowled at him for a second before taking it back.  
"In my experience master Jim, it's often worse luck not to have them." Jack grinned mischievously and they all laughed for a second before Barbossa spoke up.  
"Truth be told lad, the only reason they're seen as bad luck is due to the fact that the men can't keep their minds from a-wanderin' in their presence." He gave a suggestive smirk and Jack and Jim nodded their agreement.  
"Aye." Jack nodded knowingly and they all drank in silence for a second.  
"Why're you askin' anyway lad? Gettin' to that age are ye?" Jim grinned at her and she resisted the odd urge to laugh.  
"Curious is all." She shrugged offhandedly and took a long drink from her bottle. It wasn't long before it was empty and she could actually feel herself swaying in her seat.  
"I think... It's time I went to bed..." She heard the men around her chuckle and stood up.  
"Thanks for the party Cap'n, was great." She gave a weak smile and had to place a hand on Jim' shoulder for support. She vaguely registered Jack laughing before he answered.  
"No problem lad. Bill!" He called over his shoulder and Bill walked over, rum in hand.  
"Help our weak-legged friend to his bed, if he falls overboard I don't think he'd be able to tell up from down." He grinned and Kris scowled at him for a second before realising he was probably right about that.  
"Aye, sir." Bill reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her towards him and helping her walk toward the stairs.  
"C'mon Kris." He gave a kind smile which she tried to return but in truth the world was spinning far too much for her to really even see where she was going as he lead her up some stairs.

With a lot of difficulty they managed to get to Jacks cabin.  
"You really have a lot to learn about rum lad." He chuckled as she dropped onto the floor beside her blanket and started pulling off her boots.  
"Don' call me that." She shot him a scowl and he blinked in confusion.  
"Don't call you what?" He crouched down beside her and she turned to him with a serious expression. Something in the back of her mind was telling her to keep quiet but it was too quiet for her to figure it out.  
"'Lad', I'm a girl." She folded her arms across her chest and scowled at him. Bill's eyebrows shot up as he looked at her and silence fell in the cabin.  
"Get some sleep Kris; we'll talk in the morning." He nodded to the blanket and she shrugged, feeling her eyelids growing heavier with each passing second.  
"Mmkay." With that she promptly let the spinning world knock her over and black filled her vision. She still felt the waves of nausea for a few minutes before her foggy brain gave up under the strain and she slipped into a heavy sleep.

"On your feet Kris!" Someone was shouting nearby and dragging her out of her blissfully painless sleep. A welcoming throb from her head and a turn by her stomach caused her to give a groan of defiance and roll onto her face, refusing to rejoin the world of the living yet.  
"Jim, if you please." Some part of her mind registered that it was Sparrow speaking and suddenly an icy wave hit her like a bomb. She sat bolt upright with a yelp of surprise and her vision swam for a second before the two men stood above her came into focus.  
"Welcome back lad." Jim looked a little sympathetic but equally amused and Sparrow was just grinning.  
"You're late for work lad. On your feet and start cleaning." He had no sympathy in his tone and she pushed her soaked hair back out of her eyes before placing a hand onto the wall to help herself up.  
"I appreciate the party and everything. But if I ever get that drunk again shoot me before I wake up." Her head throbbed in agreement and Jack chuckled.  
"Do your work inside for the day and you'll be fine tomorrow. Now hurry up." He made a shooing gesture and turned to leave. Once he was gone Jim passed her the bucket he'd used to dump water on her head.  
"Bill was looking for you at breakfast, go find him when you get the chance." He gave a small sympathetic smile and turned to walk out, turning back one final time with one foot out of the door.  
"Oh, and drink a lot of water today. It'll help." He grinned and shut the door behind him, leaving her to try and figure out why Bill wanted to talk to her. After a second of thought it hit her and her stomach tied itself into a giant knot. She'd told him. Clearly he hadn't told anyone but that was a small comfort. She bit her lip and set about cleaning the cabin as fast as she could. She had to find Bill as soon as possible.

An hour or so and constant worrying later, she emerged from Sparrow's cabin and began her search for Bill. The sun hurt her eyes so she was relieved when she found him down in the galley on his own.  
"Bill. About last night..." She trailed off and he looked at her seriously.  
"I knew there was something odd about you. Why are you pretending to be a boy, lass?" He leant back against a beam and folded his arms. She took a deep breath before starting, this was going to take some explaining.  
"I had to run away from home when I stole this necklace from my father, it was the last thing I had of my mothers and he was going to sell it for money he could spend at the tavern. I ended up on this ship but I planned to get off after he'd given up looking for me. On my way off I actually walked into Sparrow, who asked me why I was on board and when I couldn't give an answer he guessed I was his new cabin boy. I was too confused to argue and well... I was scared of pirates back then so I just agreed with what he said. Once he was gone I figured out that he'd gotten my gender wrong but staying on this ship seemed like a pretty good idea for now, it got me away from my father. I meant to get off at the next port but I got too wrapped up in all this and couldn't bring myself to do it." She placed a hand awkwardly over the back of her neck and looked to him for his reaction.  
"You know you'll have to tell them sooner or later. Either that or leave and truth be told everyone's become quite fond of you lass." He gave her a slight smile which she returned before sighing.  
"I know, I'll figure something out, but for now can you keep it a secret?" She gave him a pleading look and he chuckled.  
"If they ask I'll tell them, but until then I don't know a thing." He gave a kind smile and ruffled her hair before walking off. She grinned with relief and ran a hand over her face. How could anyone think pirates were evil? As far as she could tell they were all really nice.

_**Pirates are lovely ^_^**_


	3. Chapter 2: Nicola

**_Sorry for the huge absence but my computer broke toward the end of last year and my old laptop had to be dragged out of retirement (It's power supply is actually made of tape and bits of metal from beer cans, no joke) and it's a little difficult to work on. I should have it back by next week now but I managed to kick a chapter out of this one while I'm stuck on it ;) hopefully I'll manage another by tomorrow night eh?  
Disclaimer: No I do not own PotC in any way shape or form. Though I do kind of want The Black Pearl..._**

**Chapter 2: Nicola.**

Tia Dalma's hut was, in one word, creepy. Jars full of eyes hung from her ceiling and that wasn't even half of it. She tried to stop herself from letting her eyes wander around too much and just stuck close to Jim, who looked equally uncomfortable in the strange place. The woman herself was... Hard to explain, just as Bill and Jim had said, even Sparrow himself seemed to get a little uncomfortable around her, but then she was pretty much attached to his front. She flinched as the woman's dark eyes found her and seemed to dive into her soul. Jim moved aside a bit as Tia walked toward her, clearly not wanting to be in her way.  
"You be hidin' quite de secret. Kris Kuris." She grinned down at her and Kris felt her eyes widen in panic and fear.  
"I... Er..." She couldn't figure out what to say, this woman was going to give away her secret and there was nothing she could do to stop it.  
"Leave me cabin boy alone and tell us why we had to come so quickly." Sparrow's impatient voice rang through the silence of the hut and Tia Dalma stayed grinning down at her for another second before spinning around and talking to him again. Kris let out a long breath and sat down on the floor in the corner, trying to keep out of sight in case she returned to her when she'd explained what was going on. While they were talking Kris felt something touch her shoulder, she looked and froze as she found a bright white and yellow snake looking at her from where it was now resting it's head on her shoulder. She stared at it for a minute and fought against a flinch as its tongue flicked out to taste the air. After a while of staring at each other she tentatively reached a hand up, hesitating slightly before running her finger along the top of its head, very gently. When it didn't react she repeated the action, feeling a little silly to be petting a snake but after a minute or so of this the snake started moving, sliding around the back of her neck and draping around her shoulders, its tail curling around her arm for balance. She froze while it was moving to prevent a shudder but when it didn't start constricting she smiled and went back to gently stroking its head, glancing to Jim sat nearby who was looking at her with a slightly amused expression. When Tia Dalma and Sparrow finally finished talking everyone started to leave, she didn't notice and stayed sat with the snake. Eventually a voice broke through to her and he looked up to find Sparrow and Tia Dalma looking down at her.  
"You be lucky, she don't take to people much." The woman looked thoughtful before leaning down and letting the snake move onto her before stepping away.  
"Be seein' you again Kuris. Be sure of dat." She nodded and walked off back toward her back room, snake still wrapped around her shoulders.  
"C'mon lad. Back to the Pearl." Sparrow waved a hand for her to follow him as he walked out the door, she paused for a second to glance back toward the room the strange woman had disappeared into and hoped she wouldn't meet her again too soon.

Once back on board The Pearl Barbossa and Sparrow were planning furiously, she kept her head down and tried to scrub the floor as quietly as possible.  
"... Right, we'll stop off at Port Royal to resupply, here, on our way to here... Where we should find the first one." Barbossa nodded along as Sparrow pointed to various places on the map.  
"Aye, a storm's comin' in, from the east, should we wait her out?" Kris found herself cringing slightly at Barbossa's words, she hated storms.  
"We need to get going as fast as possible. Keep us out of the shallows and she'll be fine." Sparrow started rolling up the maps and Barbossa nodded once.  
"Aye, I'll take the helm." With that he left and Kris realised she'd been cleaning the same spot for ages.  
"Kris." She turned to see Sparrow looking at her with a serious expression.  
"Aye Captain?" She decided to feign innocence for as long as possible.  
"Don't pay much heed to Tia Dalma. She has a habit of saying things to confuse anyone who steps into that hut of hers." He gave a slight smile and pulled the cork out of a bottle of rum, taking a long drink before continuing.  
"Any idea what she was talkin' about?" He tilted his head to the side and she shrugged casually.  
"We all have little secrets, can't think of any too big though..." She trailed off, looking thoughtful. It surprised her a little how easily lying came to her but then she'd watched Sparrow lie his way out of some awkward situations at various ports in the past year.  
"Fair enough... Fancy a game lad?" He gestured to a deck of cards on his desk and she stood up.  
"Don't know how to play." She placed a hand over the back of her neck awkwardly and he grinned.  
"I'll teach you. C'mon." He sat down on one side of the desk and pushed a bottle of rum across the table toward her. She smiled slightly and dropped down into Barbossa's usual seat, taking a sip from the bottle before turning to watch him shuffle.

The storm caused hell on the Pearl. Barbossa and Jack took turns at the helm since they were the only two on board experienced enough to handle it in this weather while she mostly stayed in the galley or Jack's cabin. Truth be told the size of the waves crashing against the ship scared the hell out of her. She'd only just managed to get her sea legs over months of being on The Pearl and that was in calm weather. She was in Jack's cabin, sitting on her blanket in the corner in an attempt to calm herself down a bit when Jim came running in, soaked to the bone.  
"Kris! Jack's shoutin' for ye." His urgency gave way to a sympathetic look as he spotted her in the corner.  
"You alright lad?" He walked over and she stood up, hand against the wall for support.  
"Yeah, just not used to... well, this." As if to make her point the whole ship tilted and they both had to lean on the wall to keep themselves up.  
"Takes some gettin' used to. But Jack's shoutin for ye so ye'd better hurry yerself up. He's at the helm." He nodded to the door and she nodded, staggering slightly before getting to the door. She glanced back to see Jim frowning a bit.  
"When we get to port, get yerself a coat kid." He smiled slightly and she nodded before wrenching open the door. The rain hit her in the face like a brick and she couldn't help but wonder what exactly Sparrow could possibly want in this storm. She staggered out onto deck and everyone was rushing about, orders were being shouted left right and centre and she was pretty sure only half of them were being heard. With great difficulty, she made it to the stairs just as a huge wave crashed over the side of the ship, drenching her completely and trying to drag her overboard. Fortunately the banister was at hand for her to hang onto and after a seconds rest she was pulling herself the rest of the way up the stars to the helm.  
"Kris! Took ye long enough!" Despite the weather Jack still seemed in a relatively good mood.  
"Me rum's empty! Take this and get me another bottle!" He pressed a key into her hand and she stared at him in disbelief. Was he serious? He flashed a grin and turned back to the helm and then she remembered it was Jack, and yes, he was serious. She rolled her eyes and set about stumbling down the stairs, actually falling down the last couple and hissing in pain as her arm landed on some broken glass. She guessed that was what had happened to the bottle once Jack discovered it was empty. With a heavy sigh she decided to get this over with and kill him when the weather settled down.

She was called out several times during that night, not always by Jack, it seemed both he and Barbossa were better at the helm after a few bottles. Not that it mattered much to her anyway, she was already soaked to the bone and it wasn't as if she could get any sleep in this weather. Eventually though, they made it out of the storm, The Pearl completely intact despite the weathers attempts to tear her to pieces. She, on the other hand, could not say the same; the glass had left a pretty big slice along her right forearm that she was in the process of cleaning when Jack finally sauntered back into his cabin the next morning.  
"Breakfast'll be ready soon lad... How did you get tha'?" He nodded to the cut and she scowled at him.  
"Fell on a broken bottle, thrown by **someone**. While getting rum for a certain **Captain**." She stayed scowling at him for another second before going back to cleaning it. He walked over and crouched down.  
"Let me see." He held out a hand and she rolled her eyes before holding her arm out for him to look at.  
"Needs stitching. Take yerself to Jim." With that he wandered back over to his charts and dropped down into his chair. She got up and started walking out only to be called back.  
"Oi! Where's me store key?" He shouted after her and she stuck her head back inside.  
"On your desk." She nodded at it in the middle of all the charts and he looked at it in surprise. With a slight smirk to herself she carried on walking to the galley where she was pretty sure she'd find Jim.

The stop at Port Royal was an interesting one, her old sleeveless vest and baggy brown breeches weren't as good as they used to be for hiding her figure, not to mention that her boots that she'd stolen from Tortuga were starting to fall apart after a year at sea. She guessed the salt wore away at them faster or something but regardless, she needed new clothes. So when they docked she asked Sparrow if she could go ashore to get some and he said yes, even throwing her a small leather bag that rattled with the sound of the coins inside it.  
"As cabin boy ye don't get paid so ye can keep that." He gave a slight grin and she smiled back.  
"Thanks." She spoke earnestly and he shooed her away with a wave of his hand. A grin still on her face she attached the bag to her belt and tucked it onto her pocket, keeping her hand on it as she walked off the ship onto the docks. She knew well enough from living in Tortuga that having it tied to your belt rarely stopped people from stealing your money. A new shirt and breeches were easy to find in the market and she was relatively proud of her ability to haggle the lowest prices out of the sellers. A year ago she wouldn't have had the courage to suggest lowering the price even a little but now she knew they were lucky that she was paying at all let alone a price they were willing to accept. After a while of looking around she finally spotted a brown leather vest that would help with both the cold and covering her increasingly obvious chest. She debated with herself over getting some bandages but finally decided that, though she'd never corrected him, she'd never actually told Jack that she was a boy. Maybe she should just let him notice when it became too obvious to hide and act as though she was surprised that he actually didn't know. It was a strange plan but it would probably just make him laugh, either way she wasn't fond of the idea of wearing ridiculously tight bandages all the time. She slipped into a deserted alleyway and swiftly got changed, leaving her old clothes behind some crates but taking her belt with her money and sword still attached to it. In no hurry to get back she walked aimlessly around the market, smoothly stealing an apple from a passing cart and leaning against a wall to watch as the crowds walked past.

It wasn't long before she saw someone working on the people, clearly looking for a target to steal from. He was a boy around her age, maybe a little older, and after a couple of minutes he seemed to finally find someone worth stealing from. She followed him with her eyes as he walked slowly across the market place toward his target. A young, blonde, girl, dressed in riding clothes, clearly rich, clearly clueless about the dangers of walking alone through a market place full of pick-pockets and thieves. She watched with a slightly amused smirk until the boy slipped into a side alley and as the girl passed he pulled her in, covering her mouth with his hand as he went. If you wanted to steal from someone, you didn't have to drag them out of sight. Curious, she walked across the market and stopped just next to the alley, listening carefully.  
"Now just behave yourself and I won't hurt you." His voice could barely be heard with the sound of tearing fabric quickly followed it. Realisation crashed over her and anger bubbled up in her gut. Theft was one thing, hell, **she** was a thief,** this**was another. Without even thinking she slipped into the alley, drawing her sword and pressing the tip to the boys neck, not even wanting to look at the terrified girl he was pinning against the wall.  
"Be clever and back away." She filled her voice with all the hatred she could muster and the boy immediately spun around to face her, fear filling his expression. She pressed her sword a little harder against his neck and glared at him.  
"Run now and you'll live. Savvy?" She noted with a slight sense of pride that she sounded something like Jack when she spoke but didn't have time to really acknowledge it since the whelp turned and ran off almost straight away, leaving her with a crying girl sat beside her on the floor. She considered just leaving and getting back to The Pearl but instead she pulled off her new vest and dropped it over the girl's shoulders, maybe it was her feminine side coming through, or maybe she was just too kind-hearted. She slid her sword away and knelt down to look at her.  
"Are you hurt?" She tried not to sound as concerned as she was but she had a feeling it didn't go well. The girl looked up and Kris found herself met with a pair of astoundingly bright green eyes, her mind wiped itself blank for a second and as she opened her mouth to speak she couldn't make the words come out. After a second she managed to right herself and shut it again, waiting for the girl to answer.  
"N-no... Who are you?" She still looked scared and Kris remembered she still looked like a guy to most people.  
"Name's Kris, and you would be?" She tilted her head to the side questioningly, trying to seem as harmless as possible.  
"Nicola..." She seemed to calm down quite a bit so Kris stood up.  
"Wait here a minute then Nicola." She stood up and walked back into the marketplace.

After casually stealing a shirt from one of the stalls she returned to the alley.  
"Here, put this on." She threw the shirt at the girl and leant on the wall across from her, folding her arms across her chest while she waited. Nicola seemed to hesitate for a second before turning so that her back was facing Kris and taking off the leather vest. Kris rolled her eyes and glanced down at the entrance to the alley to make sure no-one was coming. When she looked back she found the girl holding out her vest.  
"Thank you." She gave a weak smile and Kris nodded, taking her vest back and pulling it on.  
"Don't mention it, now, if you're not going to suddenly pass out, I'll take my leave." She flashed a quick grin and turned to leave, only to find herself stuck on something. A frown covered her face as she turned around to find the girl hanging onto the back of her vest.  
"What?" She heard the irritation in her own voice and clearly Nicola did too since she immediately let go.  
"You saved my life." She spoke quietly and looked down at the floor, Kris gave a dark chuckle.  
"No I didn't, I saved your... something else." She flicked her eyes up and down with a slight smirk and tried not to laugh as she watched a blush fill the other girls face. After a second she seemed to regain her composure.  
"Regardless, my parents will be grateful; they'll give you a reward." She smiled hopefully, as though she wanted her to think of this as her way of saying thank you. Truthfully she was tempted, but what would she do with the money?  
"Forget it. I just have somethin' against watchin' men be bastards." She glanced in the direction the boy had run with a scowl and turned back to see the confused expression on the girl.  
"You know, sometimes I think I should be insulted by how many people think I'm a boy." She smirked slightly as she saw realisation crash over the other girls face.  
"Sorry... But the way you're dressed... And how you act..." She trailed off and looked embarrassed. Kris laughed.  
"Yeah well, they don't like havin' girls on ships." She shrugged but grinned as the girls eyes widened slightly.  
"You're a pirate?" She looked a little scared, but not as scared as most people would be. She paused for a second before answering, was she? She was a thief who sailed under the command of pirates, that pretty much made her one... The police would see it that way, so yes, she was.  
"I might be. So what will you do? Call for police? Have me clapped in irons and hauled away to be hung?" She tilted her head with a teasing smile, a little scared for a second that that would be what the girl would do but as the girl's expression turned into a scowl she arched an eyebrow.  
"Do you plan to harm me?" She folded her arms across her chest and the look of calm on her face was a stunning change from the cowering girl she had been a few minutes ago.  
"Wasn't on my list of things t'do today." She grinned and Nicola smiled.  
"Then I'll ask if you want some lunch in payment for saving my... Something else." She smiled weakly at her attempt at a joke and Kris grinned. She liked this girl.  
"Why not?" She shrugged as Nicola beamed, a smile turning the corners of her own mouth without her being able to stop it.

Lunch with Nicola certainly was odd, she sat at the table and ate with the manners of a princess and yet occasionally when she spoke of her life a look of sheer distaste would cross her face. Kris got the strong impression she wasn't happy at home but decided against commenting.  
"So what of your own life?" Her tone was full of genuine curiosity and Kris took a second to decide whether she should tell the truth or not.  
"I was born in Tortuga, my mother died when I was seven. This was hers." She lifted the pendant of her necklace out of her shirt to show her for a second before letting it drop back out of sight.  
"So I lived with my father. Who... Let' say he wasn't a nice man and leave it at that. So one day I bolted and ended up on a ship. That was last year." She shrugged and Nicola reached across, placing a hand over hers.  
"I'm sorry about your mother." She sounded genuine but Kris wasn't so sure. She gave a slight smile back anyway.  
"Thanks." She took her hand back and looked outside at the sun, she'd been gone longer than expected, Jack had said they'd be leaving before sunset.  
"I have to go. They won't wait for me." She grinned at the thought and stood up.  
"Thanks for the food." She flashed a smile and Nicola stood up too.  
"Thank you for saving me." She grinned and Kris gave a short laugh.  
"One good dead and now I'll never hear the end of it." She shook her head and turned to leave but, again, found herself stopped.  
"Take this." She pulled the black ribbon from her hair and held it out. Kris arched an eyebrow.  
"Why?" She frowned slightly in confusion and Nicola took her hand to put the ribbon in it.  
"So you don't forget the good dead you did." She smiled and closed Kris's hand around the black material. Kris gave a slight smile and nodded once.  
"Thanks..." She trailed off, uncomfortable in this type of situation but froze as the blonde leaned forward, placing a kiss of her cheek before walking past her to the door. Kris stayed frozen, stunned by the indescribable rush of feelings that rages through her. What the hell was that?! She blinked a few times before realising that the woman behind the bar was looking at her with an amused expression and quickly righting herself, turning on her heel and walking out; she had to get back to the Pearl quickly.

As she walked back onto the deck she found everyone getting ready to make way.  
"It's about time you got here lad, was starting to think you'd deserted." Jack grinned at her as she walked into his cabin. She just chuckled in response.  
"Found yerself some suitable clothes I see... But what's that?" She watched his eyes dart to her left wrist, where she'd now tied Nicola's ribbon. She clasped her hands behind her back quickly and pulled an innocent expression onto her face.  
"Nothin'." She knew she wasn't convincing anyone but she really didn't want to tell him about Nicola. He grinned and stood up, striding over and pulling her arm around, holding it up so the ribbon was inches from his face.  
"I see... _That's_ what took ye so long. Just when I was startin' to wonder if ye had anythin' between yer legs at all lad. Congratulations." He let go of her arm and slapped a hand onto her shoulder, grinning knowingly.  
"Th-thanks..." She was both confused and relived by his assumption but he seemed to take it as embarrassment.  
"No need to be shy lad, we've all done it, though I think a few of this crew haven't for a while..." He looked at her expectantly, and, noticing the joke, gave a nervous chuckle. Looking appeased he turned and headed to the door.  
"Well, we're about to make way, get to work." He gave the last order in a slightly more serious tone and she nodded.  
"Aye, Captain." She was glad to be off the topic of her apparent sex life and he gave one last grin before exiting the cabin. Well, it certainly had been an interesting day...

The next year was full of a lot of fights, most of which Jack refused to let her take part in due to her age and skill level, apparently Tia Dalma had sent them to collect something from various people and all of them were very unhappy to be parted with whatever it was so they sunk quite a few ships. Eventually they returned to Tia Dalma's hut but she was told to stay on the ship with Pintel and Ragetti, not really to her disappointment since she didn't want to risk another run in with the voodoo woman though she had been looking forward to seeing how much the snake would have grown. She sat up playing cards with the two men for the time Jack and the others were ashore and when they returned Jack and Barbossa seemed pleased with themselves, apparently they had been allowed to keep the plunder they'd gained while searching for, whatever they'd been searching for, and that meant they were now all a little bit richer. That night there had been something of a party, after which, having learnt her lesson the first time, she was the most sober and so left on watch. She occasionally took sips from her bottle to keep the cold at bay and rested a hand on the wheel of the helm. If she was right, by the time they reached Tortuga it would be her birthday again. She would be sixteen. Her father had planned to get her married off to some wealthy lad as soon as she turned sixteen, so he would be cared for by her husband's family. A ridiculous idea since she wasn't exactly pretty enough or connected enough to even turn one of their heads. Now she thought about it, no man had ever turned _her _head, she just wasn't interested. Her eyes wandered to the ribbon on her wrist and images of bright green eyes flashed through her head, the only one who had caught her eye, in that way, so far, was Nicola... But that wasn't right was it? Women were supposed to like men... Maybe she'd been dressed as a boy too long, she was starting to think like one... Her father had wanted a boy, she knew that much. That was why he had her keep her hair short and why he'd dressed her in breeches and shirts rather than dresses, he had been disappointed when she had turned out as a girl. Maybe that was why he had hated her... She was dragged from her thoughts by footsteps coming up the stairs; she turned and found Jack walking toward her.  
"Anythin' interestin' lad?" He leant against the railing and she shook her head.  
"Apart from snoring, all quiet." She grinned and he chuckled.  
"I've decided something." He walked over, looking proud of himself.  
"I dread to think." She smirked but was being serious, Jack's idea were often something to be feared.  
"'m goin' to give you a birthday present when we get to Tortuga." He grinned and slapped a hand onto her shoulder. She arched an eyebrow suspiciously.  
"If it's embarrassing, I'll set fire to your hat." She had figured out Jack's attachment to his hat around the time he'd thrown her into the water after it when she'd accidently made him drop it. She grinned as he clasped both hands over it on his head.  
"So it is embarrassing then?" She smirked mischievously and he laughed.  
"Only if ye let it be lad. Now off to bed. The railing's need varnish tomorrow." He gave her a nudge toward the stairs and took the helm, picking up her bottle and taking a long drink. With a slight smile she turned and headed off to 'bed'.

Tortuga was exactly as she remembered it. Loud, busy, drunk and dangerous. Only difference was that this time she wasn't scared of it, if anything it felt good to be home as she strode through the streets with Jack, Barbossa and the rest of the crew. They took the all too familiar route to the Faithful Bride and for a minute she was worried about running into someone who knew her, maybe even her father. Then she remembered that she'd left two years ago as a pale child in ridiculously baggy clothing who looked terrified of anything and everything around her. Now she was bronzed by hours in the burning sun, wearing clothes that fit and she was certainly sure that, though she couldn't quite bring herself to saunter around like Sparrow and Barbossa, she wasn't cowering into herself anymore. They stepped into the tavern and all took seats around various tables, to her surprise she found herself pulled into a seat beside Jack, who he grinned at her.  
"I told you I'd be giving you a birthday present." He had a worryingly mischievous glint in his eye that, by the look of things, even had Barbossa looking a little worried. It was true, he had said that, but it had been a week ago now and she'd assumed he'd been drunk. He didn't seem to be about to give any more information away on the subject and all of their attention was diverted as a particularly busty barmaid came around and Jack ordered a lot of rum to be brought to them.

Not much later, after a great deal of laughing and a few mugs of rum Jack's plan was finally revealed in the shape of two women approaching their table, one red haired and the other blonde, they were both wearing revealing dresses and far too much makeup. It didn't take long for her to figure out what they were here for.  
"Well, your present is here lad." Jack grinned proudly and Kris fought to keep her panic at bay, self consciously fiddling with her new piercing that she'd gotten earlier that day from Jim, who had advised her not to get one every year otherwise she'd have no ear left.  
"I don't know what to say..." She mumbled and drained the rest of her glass.  
"Just say thank you and pick one." He drained his own glass and Kris stood up, playing her part well despite the fact she was trying to think of a way to get out of this and coming up with nothing. She looked carefully at the women for a minute before deciding that the blonde seemed more likely to co-operate given she wasn't attempting to molest the Captain in the middle of the tavern.  
"So, Giselle? Or Scarlett?" He gestured to each in turn and she smiled.  
"Giselle." The blonde gave her a slight returning smile and Jack grinned.  
"Good lad. Love, this here is Kris, it's his birthday, and he's a little shy so be nice." He cast a slight smirk to her before turning and walking toward the stairs with Scarlett. Giselle gave her a kind smile and took her hand, pulling her in the same direction. A plan finally formed in her mind as they walked through the door into a dimly lit bedroom and she opened her mouth to speak, only to find it covered by a mouth. She gently pushed the woman away and gave an apologetic smile.  
"Erm... This is going to be difficult to explain, but I need your help." She watched as confusion filled the woman's face and she stepped back, nodding once.  
"I'm a girl, Captain Sparrow assumed I was a boy two years ago now and he hasn't noticed that he was wrong. So if you could not tell anyone that would be great." She gave a weak smile and the woman laughed.  
"I thought there was somethin' a bit strange about you darlin'. As long as you pay me for what we're s'posed to be doin' so my time ain't wasted I won't breathe a word." She smiled warmly and Kris nodded.  
"Thanks, how much?" She pulled out the leather pouch she'd been keeping all of her money in since Jack had been kind enough to start paying her and Giselle told her the price. She handed the coins over with a smile and a small bonus to ensure her silence before heading over to the window.  
"I'll be back before our times up; I just have something to do." After waiting for a nod from the woman she climbed out of the window and down the nearby guttering.

She headed to her old home and paused briefly outside the door, by the sound of it no-one was in so she slipped inside, noting that her father still left it unlocked all the time. It was still the same as she remembered it, smoke blackened walls from the open fireplace, filthy floor and damp smell of mould. Charming. After a quick look around she found the pistol her dad kept beside his bed and pushed it through her belt, she wasn't the best shot, but if she wanted to practice she'd need her own. Not to mention she had a feeling it used to be her mother's anyway, it looked too expensive to have belonged to her father. As though thinking of him made him appear, the door behind her crashed open and she spun around to face the man in the doorway.  
"What're you doin' in my house?!" His words were slurred and she grinned, resting a hand on her sword.  
"What do you mean? I live here." She smirked at his confused expression as he stumbled forward.  
"Don't mess with me whelp, or I'll beat you 'till you run home cryin'." He raised a threatening fist that, for the first time in her life, she didn't even flinch at, instead she simply kept smirking.  
"What's the matter father? Don't recognise your own daughter?" She tilted her head to the side questioningly as he took a step back to look at her properly, seeming to have trouble focusing on anything in his drunken state.  
"You thieving wretch! Come back to take the clothes from my back?! I'll teach you not to steal from me!" He stepped forward and in a flash her sword was at his throat.  
"Touch me and I'll make it so you never touch anything again." Venom filled her voice and he froze.  
"Y-you wouldn't kill your own father would you?" His eyes were much more focused now and full of fear. She chuckled darkly.  
"You'd kill me given half the chance. And that's why I won't, I just stopped by to say good bye since I left in such a hurry last time. Bye." While talking she walked around him so that her back was to the door and continued backing away until her shoulders hit wood. As she spoke the last word she grinned and walked out, leaving him and his hovel behind as she wandered up the streets and back to the tavern.

She climbed back in through the window and found Giselle reading a book.  
"Right, how long before we go back down?" She walked to the mirror and began messing up her hair a little, watching Giselle in the reflection as she stood up and walked over.  
"About two minutes, you cut it close... Come here." She made her spin around and started messing around with her hair, expertly making it look as though she'd already tried to fix it.  
"Thanks." Kris grinned at her and she looked thoughtful for a second before stepping closer.  
"Hang on; you're missin' somethin' if you want to look convincing." She moved forward and made her tilt her head to the side before placing her mouth on her neck. Kris tensed up for a second before she figured out what she was doing and held still. Giselle left a large red mark on the side of her neck then proceeded to leave a few lipstick smudges trailing around. She stepped back to admire her handiwork before nodding slowly.  
"Now you look right. Off you go darlin'. And if Jack ever tries this on you again just ask for me, I'll help you out." She gave a kind smile and Kris grinned.  
"Thanks." With that she turned and left, wandering back downstairs with a 'happy' smirk on her face as she had seen others do as a child. She made it back to the table and found Jack already sat with Barbossa and Jim.  
"Good time then lad?" Jim indicated to her neck and she feigned a grin, picking up the spare mug that she assumed was hers and taking a long drink. With this sort of pretence she just needed to grin and wink in the right places and no-one would notice a thing.  
"Captain, as much as I appreciate the thought, next year, don't get me a present, or I actually will set fire to your hat." She grinned and all three men around the table laughed loudly.  
"Fair deal." He grinned and they all held their drinks up before draining them.

**Okiedokie, well, there's the chapter you've all been waiting ages for... XD hope you enjoyed it**


	4. Chapter 3: A Beautiful Rose

**_Woo fast release ^_^ I guess I'm getting back into the swing of things :) Hope you enjoy this next chapter in the life of Kristine Kuris._****  
****_Disclaimer: As much as I would love to be able to take credit for Pirates of the Caribbean, I can't, I can only take credit for the characters I've added to it :)_**

**Chapter 3: A Beautiful Rose**

The morning after had been a little painful, she'd ended up getting a tribal design tattooed onto her upper left arm after a long conversation with Jack about the sparrow on his wrist and a few of the others he had. It didn't hurt nearly as much as she'd thought it would at the time but the next morning, while sober, it hurt a lot more. Though she'd gotten it done while drunk, she didn't regret it one bit. She'd seen people with tattoos as a child and found herself wanting some. The following year, as a gift to herself on her birthday, she'd gotten the skull and crossed swords flag of The Pearl tattooed on the left side of her ribs. Of course she didn't tell anyone but Bill who'd smiled warmly when he saw it and told her she was too emotional for her own good but it was best to get tattoos of things that mattered to you. The Black Pearl certainly mattered to her, it had taken her away from her old life and turned her into someone she was proud to be. Now that she was seventeen Jack had told her that she would sleep with the rest of the crew in the hammocks below deck and whenever they come to fight with other ships she was fighting alongside them rather than hiding in the cabin. Granted the first time she'd killed someone she had been a little more than shaky, but after a long conversation with Jack about how it was survival rather than mindless killing, she was a lot better. She practiced fighting with some of the crew members whenever she had spare time and was proud to say that the only two she couldn't beat were Barbossa and Jack, much to their amusement whenever they landed her on her ass in front of the crew. Still, regardless of how much she'd changed over the last three years Bill remained the only one among the crew who knew of her little secret, something she was never sure if she was glad of or not. She didn't actually think of it all too often anymore, occasionally when she was on the helm at night she'd wonder if Nicola thought about her at all, there had been something interesting about her that she couldn't quite shake from her mind. Maybe she'd find her again one day, just to surprise her. She'd always smile to herself at the thought of her face when she turned up but then she'd clear the thoughts from her head and go back to whatever she was doing.

Jack and Barbossa were arguing about something trivial again, Barbossa seemed to get more and more edgy the longer they spent on this hunt. Jack had discovered the location of the long lost Isla de Muerta, an island that, according to Jack, could not be found, except by those who already know where it is. Apparently there was a hell of a lot of treasure there and she found herself quite excited to see what they would find there. She'd mentioned this feeling to Jack and he'd laughed and called her a pirate. To Barbossa's annoyance though, he'd kept the bearings to himself, and for the fifth time this week, he was bugging Jack about telling him. Eventually Jack threw up his hands and gave up, pointing out the location on the map but not saying it out loud. He only fully trusted certain people around here and some of the crew were not on that list. As Barbossa turned to leave there was a disturbing grin on his face that worried her a little, then again, any sign of happiness on that man's face looked creepy, so it was difficult to judge and she dismissed it. When she'd finished cleaning the floor she sat down with Jack to play cards as they often did these days she was getting better at it by far, she even managed to beat him a few times a night, though he still won more often than not. They were halfway through a bottle of rum when there was a loud roar of noise on deck, she and Jack both spun around to face the door but Jack seemed to know what was going on within seconds.  
"Oh." He gave a heavy sigh and for the first time since she'd met him he looked angry.  
"Don't do anything. They'll kill you." He spoke quietly but there was a strong anger behind his voice that made her speechless. Before she could wrap her mind around what was going on, Jack stood up and started walking toward the door, pulling his coat on as he went.  
"Look after yerself Kris." He flashed a small smile before walking out, she followed after him but quickly found a sword pressed to her neck and hands holding her arms.  
"Well, Jack! I'm afraid your career as a pirate has been a short one. I am the captain of the Black Pearl. No one challenges my authority." Barbossa's voice rang out over the victorious cheers of 'Barbossa's', now smaller, crew. A lot of the others were missing and Kris saw a few scattered around the deck. Now she knew what he'd meant when Jack had told her they would kill her.  
"Hector. The deepest circle of hell is reserved for betrayers and mutineers. You sir, have stooped." He glared at his former first mate and Kris finally figured out what was going on. Mutiny. She noted with slight satisfaction that Jim also had a sword at his neck, though he was quite calmly sipping rum without paying it much heed.

The rest of the mutiny was both straightforward and painful as hell, they tied Jack's hat, pistol and sword together with his belt and threw it over board, of course, being Jack, he dived in after it and started swimming for the island in the distance. The sword was removed from her neck and Barbossa approached her.  
"There's nothin' ye can do lad. Best to go to bed." He ruffled her hair as he walked past and she took one last glance over at the island, Jack had almost made it to shore. She walked to the railings and watched to make sure he was okay, physically at least, she knew he was all but okay in reality. His crew had betrayed him and his ship had been stolen by his first mate. She didn't want to meet the person who was fine after that.  
"This isn't right." A quiet voice behind her made her jump and she spun around to find Bill watching Jack with her.  
"I know." She whispered quietly as she walked past him, heading for the galley, taking one last glace at the dot that was Captain Jack Sparrow on the beach before heading to her hammock for a restless night.

The next few days were tense to say the least, Barbossa watched her like a hawk and the rest of the crew seemed to have flipped from being nice to being jeering idiots. All aside from Bill and Jim of course, so she spent all of her free time with them. Barbossa decided to stop off at Tortuga to resupply before heading to the Isla de Muerta which was exactly what she'd been hoping for, being part of the crew of The Black Pearl didn't seem right under the command of 'Captain' Barbossa so when they docked she made her plan to jump ship. She wouldn't call herself a deserter for it, her Captain was gone so there was no-one to desert. She was cleaning Barbossa's cabin for the last time when a plan occurred to her and she smirked to herself. After a little bit of searching she found some of Jack's old clothes and decided it was about time she showed off her gender. With a small amount of editing a pair of brown breeches were secured with a long belt that now held her sword, pistol and money, and a white shirt was also tied in a knot just below her chest so that her entire stomach was on show and leaving a few buttons undone gave away her 'feminine form'. After quickly rolling up the sleeves to her elbows so her arms were free she strode out onto deck. Most of the crew were already ashore celebrating their future wealth but those who remained turned to stare in disbelief. All but Bill, who just chuckled and gave her a small nod. Without a word to anyone she left the ship, striding off into the streets of Tortuga with a small smile pulling at the corners of her mouth and a bottle of rum in hand. She was bound to have trouble getting work due to her gender but she wasn't about to let that hold her back, she'd spent too long as a guy as it was.

It took her a few days to get the hang of depending on herself for everything but fortunately she had enough money left from her life aboard The Pearl to keep herself fed and in a rather nice room at the Faithful Bride while she found her feet. She'd spent three years watching Jacks behaviour when they wandered around various ports and she'd already become quite adept and stealing from stalls in the marketplace. Stealing directly from people's pockets, as it turned out, was a little harder but not by much, and the drunken wanderers of Tortuga's streets were the perfect people to practice upon. Most o them wouldn't notice if she stripped them of their trousers as well as the content of their pockets. After a month or so she was actually a little proud of her ability at cut the pouches from peoples belts and keep walking in one smooth movement but the pay off was a little small and she was bored of being on dry land. Every crew she tried to join refused her almost straight off and she knew the reason why, being female really did have its drawbacks. Eventually though, a ship named The Bloody Rose came into port and there was a rumour going around that they were looking for a new quartermaster, she came down from her room most nights to play cards with some of the drunkards and earn herself some extra cash and that as when she found them. Clearly pirates, there was no disputing that, and they all seemed relatively cheerful, unlike the miserable lot she'd tried to join the other week. She sat at the bar and smiled as the barmaid came over.  
"Hey Maria, usual please love." She grinned as the woman nodded and turned to get her usual bottle of rum. She'd become pretty good friends with all the girls who worked here over the past couple months, Maria especially, she was really very clever and fantastic to talk to.  
"Here you go darlin'. That's the lot you were askin' about yesterday. Captain's name is Francis Miles." She put the bottle on the table and smiled warmly, Kris grinned back and pulled the cork out of her bottle, raising it slightly with a smirk.  
"Cheers love." She took a long drink and turned slightly so that she could watch the group on the other end of the tavern without being obvious about it. She couldn't seem to work out which one was the captain, though to her slight amazement there already was a woman part of their crew, and a rather attractive one at that... She gave herself a mental shake and took a big drink from her bottle. _Behave yourself Kris._ She stayed drinking for a while before the woman herself approached the bar.  
"What can I get you Francis?" Maria walked over and Kris could have sworn she saw her glance in her direction when she said the name. A female captain? She had to hold back a huge grin, that was one hell of an achievement, it renewed her hope for her own pirating career.  
"Same again." She smiled but her tone was straightforward, now she looked properly she didn't see how she could have missed that she was the captain.  
"Captain Miles I take it?" She arched an eyebrow questioningly and took a sip from her bottle, leaning one arm on the bar as the woman turned to face her.  
"Who's asking?" Her eyes narrowed slightly and Kris smirked slightly.  
"Kris Kuris. So do I have the right woman?" She tilted her head slightly with a small smile and the woman looked at her for a second, eventually relaxing slightly.  
"You do." She gave a slight half smile and their attention was briefly distracted as Maria arrived with her drink, a simple bottle of rum the same as Kris.  
"Brilliant, would have been a touch awkward to get the wrong one. Straight to the point, I hear you're lookin' for a quartermaster." She turned in her seat so that she was fully facing her and Miles smirked.  
"Lookin' to join my crew then are you? Experience?" She took a drink from her bottle and sat down across from her, Kris took this as a good sign and gave a small smile, tapping a finger against the tattoo on her ribs.  
"Three years aboard The Black Pearl. I was the cabin boy but the first mate and Captain did a good job of trainin' me up." She realised that her experience didn't really amount to much but she noted the slight look of surprise on Miles' face at the mention of The Pearl.  
"Mhmm. Any good with your sword?" She nodded to the sword at her hip and Kris grinned.  
"Only two I couldn't beat were my Captain and his first mate." She took another drink from her bottle and the woman smirked.  
"Why'd you leave?" Her eyes narrowed slightly at this, Kris didn't blame her, if she'd been thrown off for some reason then she probably wasn't the best one to be hiring.  
"There was a mutiny, the Captain ended up marooned. He was a good man, so I left." She scowled at her bottle at the memory for a second before looking back at Miles, who was smiling slightly.  
"Alright, we'll try you out for a while. We're headed to the orient; we'll see how you handle." She grinned and stood up.  
"We leave at sunrise. Don't be late." With that she returned to her crew and Kris turned to Maria, who was beaming.  
"Looks like you're finally headin' out then darlin'." She grinned and Kris smiled back.  
"Yep, I'll see if I can bring you back a present." She flashed a grin and Maria laughed.  
"I'm goin' to miss you. You look after yourself, you hear me?" She looked serious for a second and Kris paused, having a brief flashback to the last thing Jack said to her before going out to face the mutiny.  
"I will love, thanks for puttin' up with me. Here's this moths pay, keep the extra." She winked as she dropped the coins onto the bar and headed up toward the stairs to get her things together.

The next morning she was pretty keyed up, she woke early and headed down to the docks, The Bloody Rose was pretty easy to spot, the giant rose craved into the side gave it away a little. She walked on board and looked around for a second, everyone seemed to be working pretty efficiently at least, it wasn't quite the same atmosphere as the Pearl but it was good. She was quickly spotted by one of the man who came wobbling over, she had to hold back a laugh at his attempt at a saunter, it was mildly ridiculous.  
"Lost, wench?" He sneered at her and she smiled slightly, clearly none of them had been told she was coming, either that or this guy was just a complete moron. She had her bets on the latter.  
"I don't think so. I was looking for someone's face to sharpen my sword on. Looks like I've found one." She arched an eyebrow with a slight smirk and his face dropped.  
"Bitch. I'll teach ye who yer messin' with." He drew his sword and her smile grew into a grin.  
"If you think that's a good idea you're stupider than I thought." She pulled her own sword out slowly and ran it along his, letting the ringing sound fill the air and attract the attention of the entire crew. She couldn't be bothered with fighting them all so she'd have to make a point with this one. With a grunt of effort he started forward first, but his foot work was awful so she sidestepped him easily and slapped him on the back of the head with the side of her sword, taunting him rather than damaging. The men around them laughed as she danced about, dodging each of his attacks with a smirk until eventually he was red in the face with annoyance and she was getting bored.  
"Right, let's wrap this up." She sidestepped the last attack and tripped him over, sending him sprawling onto his face and his sword spinning along the deck. With a sigh she pointed the end at his throat when he rolled over onto his back.  
"Are we done?" She mustered the most bored face she had and looked at him with impatience.  
"Yeah." He glared at her and she gave a slight smile.  
"Ta then love." She slid her sword away an turned to walk away, finding Miles stood right behind her, a small half smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.  
"Nice to know you're gettin' along with my crew." She smirked and Kris gave a slight shrug.  
"Well you know, best to introduce yourself straight off." She grinned mischievously and Miles looked as though she might actually laugh.  
"Gents. This is our new quartermaster, Kris Kuris. As Dave has demonstrated, she knows her stuff. Now back to work!" She turned serious for the last bit and Kris arched an eyebrow as everyone went scrambling back to what they were doing.  
"Best to keep them on a short leash." She folded her arms across her chest and Kris gave a slight smirk.  
"Does this include me, Captain?" She grinned as Miles seemed to consider this for a second.  
"Hmm... I might give you a little more rope. Just don't tie me up with it." She sounded serious for the last part but to lighten the mood Kris stepped closer with a smirk.  
"I can't promise anything." With a quick wink she made her way down to the helm to wait for the order to take them away. She had a feeling she'd like it on this ship.

During the day she spent almost all of her time at the helm, not exactly a new thing for a quartermaster but she revelled in it. She'd gone from cabin boy, the lowest rung on the ladder, to quartermaster, who answered only to the Captain and first mate, and given that there was no first mate, it simply meant she answered to Miles. She was a little worried at first that she wasn't going as fast as The Pearl but then she remembered what Jack had said about her being the fastest ship there had ever been. The Rose handled pretty well and Miles gave clear orders so it was easy to keep them on course and eventually they made it to China. There were ships everywhere, all flying various flags and Miles said they were all theirs for the taking, trade to this part of the world had increased a great amount of late so trade ships were constantly moving in and out of port. Those would be their targets; trade ships don't run particularly heavily armed. They were the herbivores of ships; prey to everything, especially them, pirates held the top of the food chain and there was no disputing that.

The first few ships were a little sparse, they contained little in the way of treasure but one of them did have a brilliant sword that Miles let her have. It was a particularly lightweight katana with an ebony sheath and hilt, she replaced her old cutlass with it without too much regret, that sword had been given to her by Barbossa after all. It was the fourth ship they raided that really made them happy. It had docked a week previously and was only there to sell, not buy. So when it left port it was simply full of money. They took it down easily and pretty soon they were all celebrating in some random taverns. After such a good haul, they took a break for a few days while the male members of the crew spent their shares as they saw fit. Kris and Miles, on the other hand, stayed on board the ship and traded stories of their pasts.  
"So when he died, my father passed this down to me." She rested her hand on the ornate cutlass at her hip with a slight smile.  
"It's known as The Bloody Thorn. Only the captain of this ship can own it." She raised a hand up to tuck a lock of her raven black hair behind an ear and lent back against the railing behind her. They were enjoying the good weather by sitting out on deck, Kris was sharpening her sword, as she often did, while they were talking.  
"It's great that something like this is passed down through your family. All I have of my parents is this." She waved a hand to the necklace and Miles leant over, picking up the pendant so she could see it properly.  
"Pure silver, red garnet?" She spoke after a second and looked briefly up at Kris' face to see if she was right.  
"Dead on." She smiled and Miles let the pendant drop but didn't move back yet.  
"It's beautiful." She gave a slight smirk and Kris grinned back.  
"Something you both have in common then." It was a simply awful line but Miles seemed to find it funny enough. She slid her katana away and she noted that Miles' eyes darted to it for a split second.  
"Feel like a bit of a wager?" She tilted her head to the side slightly and smirked, Kris arched an eyebrow.  
"Depends, what are we betting on?" She grinned and leant forward, resting her elbows on her knees.  
"A fight, you and me, winner gets to choose their reward." She had a mischievous glint in her eye that made Kris grin.  
"Alright. Ladies first." She stood up and held a hand out toward the centre of the deck a small smile still playing at the corners of her mouth as Miles walked on ahead of her.  
"You don't count then?" She grinned and Kris gave a short laugh.  
"You forget, I was Cabin Boy aboard the Pearl." She poured emphasis onto the word and earned a laugh from Miles.  
"I can't see how they missed your... Assets." She grinned and stopped in the centre of the deck, pulling out her sword in a smooth movement as she turned to face her. This was going to be interesting, she'd seen Miles fight and she was very good. She'd go as far as to say she would give Barbossa a hard time.  
"First to yield then?" She drew her katana back out and shifted her grip on it slightly. It had taken a little getting used to before she could handle it as well as she did her old cutlass but she felt quite sure of her ability.  
"Aye." With that she took the first swing, clearly starting the fight.

They fought for a long time, clangs of metal on metal rang in their ears and their breathing came in heavy as they both started to tire out. Miles had held the upper hand through most of the fight but Kris was quite proud of her stubborn ability to keep going. It came from three years of fighting people with much more experience than herself. Suddenly a sharp flash of light reflected off of Miles' sword directly into her eyes and she had to close them for a second. She tried to step back out of range while she righted herself but found a foot behind hers and stumbled. Giving the woman the time to knock her sword flying. She cursed under her breath as she found the point of a blade pressed to her neck and sighed.  
"Good move." She knew the flash of light had been purposeful, and she had to admit, it was bloody clever.  
"Works every time, so, do you yield?" She smirked and Kris stepped closer, noting that Miles moved the blade with her so she didn't skewer herself.  
"Yeah, I yield." She pulled a sulky expression for a second before grinning.  
"So what is your prize?" She gave a slight smirk and tilted her head to the side questioningly. Miles stepped closer and withdrew her sword, their faces were almost touching as the sound of the metal sliding back into its scabbard filled the silence.  
"Hmm... I wonder..." There was a mischievous glint in her eye and as she finished speaking she left her lips slightly parted, locking her eyes onto Kris's as the seconds seemed to drag by. Gradually they seemed to drift closer, until it was a mere hairs breadth of a gap between them. Kris's thought were running a mile a minute trying to decide if this was a good thing or not. She and the captain had grown closer over the past month or so, that was to say the least. They'd had each other's back and saved each other's asses more than once in the fights they'd been in. Not to mention the relaxing evenings spent playing cards and swapping stories in her cabin. Eventually she ran out of thinking time as a hand was suddenly on the back of her head and lips were on hers, she should have known Miles wouldn't give warning, she wasn't the most patient person.

After a second's hesitation, she placed her hands on Miles's hips, the older woman responded by wrapping an arm around her waist and tangling her fingers, almost painfully, in her hair. She'd never actually done anything like this before so it was pretty much guesswork as she was pushed backwards towards the Captain's cabin. Eventually her shoulders collided hard with the wood of the door and Miles's hand moved from her waist to unlock the door. It amazed her slightly that she could do this without breaking the kiss but within minutes they were through the door and Miles was kicking it shut behind them, pulling off the long black coat she wore over her black and red corset and throwing it in the general direction of her chair. Kris quickly took the hint and moved her hands to the laces, pulling them undone without too much difficulty as they continued moving across the room towards the captain's bunk. By the time her knees hit the edge of the bunk the laces were undone and the corset was thrown off somewhere, she felt a small tug and then the knot that held her shirt closed was undone, the item of clothing quickly followed in the same direction as the corset before Kris found herself shoved backwards onto the surprisingly soft mattress. She'd sat of Jack's once before but it wasn't this soft. Miles followed her down and landed with one knee either side of her hips, a small smirk on her lips as they looked at each other.  
"You're actually pretty cute." She smirked and Kris realised she was blushing. Determined to prevent Miles from making her look like a simpering child, she sat up with a growl, slipping a hand smoothly into her long hair and pulling her forward into another kiss. Miles's smirk vanished as they fought for dominance; somehow the bunk was wide enough for them not to fall off no matter how many times they flipped each other onto their backs in an attempt to pin the other. Despite her, not inconsiderable, attempts, Kris still found herself pinned by her wrists by the older woman who grinned down at her with a triumphant look in her eye.  
"Maybe you've got a little fight to you after all." With that she winked and their lips crashed together once more with almost bruising intensity.

For her first time, this was anything but gentle. There was a brief moment when she gave an almost imperceptible wince that Miles noticed and paused, looking from her face to her own hand, now marked with a few smudges of blood, a look of mild surprise crossing her features for a second before she carried on. Kris was far from complaining, a vaguely coherent of her mind noted everything Miles was doing and made sure that she repaid in kind. Nails raked skin and mouths left vivid red marks wherever they travelled. Despite her lack of experience, she felt quite proud that by the time they broke apart and lay staring up at the ceiling, Miles seemed just as worn out as she was herself. After a few seconds of silence to catch her breath Miles was up and collecting her clothes. Not a particularly big surprise but Kris couldn't help but feel a little rejected as she started to do the same.  
"Oh stop lookin' like a wounded pup. We have work to do." Miles's voice broke the silence and she looked up from the laces of her breeches, realising the feeling's must've been showing on her face. She simply nodded and gave a slight smirk, pulling her belt back on and checking to make sure both her pistol and sword were still in place.  
"I expect you back here after your watch tonight." Her voice was commanding but there was a slight soft edge to it that made Kris smile slightly.  
"Aye captain." She grinned and walked out; maybe there was a soft side to her after all.

_**You guys didn't think a pirate could go for too long without sleeping with someone did you? She's still a girl you know ;) (and let's face it, if I'm writing something, it's going to happen sooner or later XD)**_


	5. Chapter 4: The Rose's Thorn

_**Kris has returned, seriously, sorry for the wait... **_

_**Chapter 4: The Rose's Thorn.**_

Weeks turned into months and they stayed around Singapore, the trade still booming and their takings still high so they continued attacking the ships going in and out of port. The amount of fights they were in earned Kris a fair few scars since, unlike when she was aboard the Pearl, no-one looked out for her in battles, she was on her own, it really helped her learn to watch her own back and become a much more capable fighter. By the time she was eighteen the scars had dropped to one every two or three attacks rather than two or three scars to each fight. On her eighteenth birthday she added a new tattoo to her collection, a black and red rose underneath the flag of the Pearl that she'd had done when she turned seventeen. It was styled after the one that sat on Miles's shoulder but it was lot smaller, when the captain saw it she smiled slightly but made no comment, something that Kris had learnt was her way of showing approval.

The next year followed in much the same pattern but Miles seemed to change slightly when it got to Kris's nineteenth birthday. She got herself a new piercing in the top of her left ear, above the other two, but when it came to pushing the ring through, the Captain intervened, taking the simple silver one from Smith and replacing it with a different one, it was still sliver but held a red gem in it. Miles later explained a little sheepishly that it was a birthday present and Kris had just grinned and kissed her. That night she'd asked her to stop calling her Miles and call her Francis, something that would get any other crew member shot.

Her twentieth brought a surprise in a different form, she was walking into a tavern to celebrate with a bottle of rum when someone caught her eye.  
"Jim?" She blinked in surprise at the man sat on his own in a corner..  
"Aye? Who wants to know?" He looked up from his drink to narrow his eyes suspiciously and she chuckled.  
"Kris Kuris. Ex cabin boy of the Black Pearl." She winked and grinned as his eyes widened in surprise.  
"Hells teeth! It is you! Sit down. I haven't seen you since you walked off the Pearl. Y'know Barbossa was too surprised to even send anyone after you?" He grinned widely as she laughed, clearly he'd already had a few but she dropped down into the seat across from him.  
"Is she in port? I haven't seen her." She glanced around briefly in case any of the other crew members were nearby and he shook his head.  
"Na, I left when you did, didn't sit right with me Barbossa bein' captain, so I took off too. Guessin' that's why you jumped it?" He took a drink from his mug and she nodded to the barmaid who gave her a smile and went to get her usual bottle. She'd become relatively known in most of the taverns around Singapore over the last couple of years, odd really, since she never thought of even drinking a single drop of alcohol before turning pirate.  
"Aye, Sparrow was a good man. I've not heard much of him since the mutiny, a whisper here and there but it's difficult to keep up with conversation around here." She waved a hand to the people around her; most of the people in Singapore didn't speak English so it was a pain trying to talk to them.  
"If the rumours are right, he only stayed on that spit of land for three days, lass. He escaped and is now out lookin' for his Pearl. Doesn't surprise me really, I'd want to pay back the first mate that led a mutiny against me if I were him." He paused while the barmaid arrived with Kris's rum and she grinned at her.  
"Cheers love." She gave a quick wink and turned back to Jim who arched an eyebrow.  
"You sound like Sparrow." He grinned and she smirked before taking a long drink from her bottle.  
"Guess he rubbed off on me, so he's out seekin' revenge huh? Might have to see if I can look him up one day." She grinned and Jim laughed.  
"Aye, just watch you don't run into the Pearl." His mood suddenly turned serious and she tilted her head to the side questioningly.  
"The stories about her are much more... Well... Apparently Barbossa and the rest of the crew are cursed. Somethin' about that island they were all off to... Isle de... Isle..."  
"Isle de Muerta." She helped him without thinking. She hadn't said the name of that island in three years but it had stuck in her memory.  
"Aye, that's the one. Anyway, somethin' there cursed them or somethin' and now they're probably the most feared thing at sea. Sept maybe Davvy Jones..." He trailed off looking thoughtful and Kris let the information wash over her. Jack was free and after a 'cursed' Barbossa? Why did she completely believe that? Her attention was pulled back to the conversation when Jim spoke again.  
"But I'm guessin' you haven't heard what happened to Bill?" He looked sad and she felt bad news rushing toward her as she shook her head.  
"He stayed on the Pearl but apparently he stood up for Sparrow, said it weren't right. Barbossa bein' Barbossa, well, Bill's now down in the locker, courtesy of a cannon on his bootstraps." His voice was sad and she let a frown come onto her face, Bill Turner had been a good man, she'd wished a better fate for him.  
"You look like you're doin' well anyway lass. How'd you come to be in Singapore?" He seemed to realise his mug was empty and Kris, feeling charitable, filled it from her bottle before answering.  
"I'm sailing under Captain Miles of The Bloody Rose." She grinned and he blinked in surprise.  
"Not bad. Not a cabin boy this time?" He chuckled and she shook her head.  
"Quartermaster." She winked and took a long drink, he seemed even more surprised.  
"I was right, y'are doin' well for yerself." He smiled and she nodded.  
"Aye, it's not a bad life." She raised her bottle and he met it with his mug, clinking them together before drinking.

She stayed talking to Jim for a long time but eventually she had to leave; she was on watch tonight. She made her way back to the ship and found herself smiling slightly at the sight of her. She was a very beautiful ship after all, not quite the dark beauty of the Pearl but pretty all the same. With a brief exchange of glares, she relived Dave with a small nod and he sulked off, she still didn't get on well with him, even after three years, she guessed he probably never got over her landing him on his face in front of the whole crew, either way, she didn't much care to be best of friends with him.

It was a long watch but when she finally ended her shift she headed down to the captain's cabin, she'd been sleeping in it every night for little over a year now, regardless of whether Francis was awake when she came in or not, tonight she was. She was sat at her desk staring at a few papers in her hand.  
"What's wrong?" She let concern colour her voice as she sat down on the edge of the bed to take off her boots. Francis didn't usually say up this late unless something was worrying her.  
"Take a look at these." The woman stood up and threw the papers down onto the bed beside her, running a hand through her hair while she waited for Kris's response. Kris looked at them and was surprised to see Francis and herself looking back up at her, along with a third of the Rose. All of them had 'Wanted' written in bold letters above them and a reward written below.  
"One thousand guineas... Not bad." She grinned and Francis shot her an annoyed look.  
"Relax, we'll just head somewhere else, we've had this place for three years now, we've got plenty of loot from her. Let's head back to Tortuga for a while, spend a bit, then head on somewhere else, I heard trade was starting to boom in England these days." She stood up and caught a pacing Francis around the waist, pulling her closer.  
"It's not the end of the world. Besides, what's a pirate without a little bounty on their head?" She grinned then looked at Francis's poster, her grin suddenly dropping into a frown.  
"Two thousand... Yours is bigger than mine." She scowled at the words, feeling slightly insulted, Francis gave a quiet laugh.  
"I've been at this longer. But you're right. We'll stop off at Tortuga for a while, let the men run free. It's about time they had some fun." She grinned and leant forwards to kiss her, Kris happily obliged.

"We'll leave her here in Tortuga, I owe her enough not maroon her. But she will be gone." Francis's voice ran through her like a cutlass. She blinked a few times while her mind tried to make sense of what was going on in there.  
"Good, yer makin' the righ' choice Cap'n." Dave's voice reached her and her eyes widened as her anger bubbled just below the surface. He was persuading Francis to leave her behind! That bastard! Not to mention the fact she was **agreeing** with him.  
"I'll send her ashore tomorrow to get something and we'll leave then, now go, she'll be back soon." With that she heard footsteps coming toward the door and she jumped back a bit, pretending to walk forward just as the door opened.  
"Dave. What're you doin' in there?" She arched an eyebrow suspiciously, pretending to not know he was a lying snake of a man with no right to live on this earth... Maybe she was a little angry...  
"Gettin orders." He scowled at her and stalked off, she watched him walk for a minute, considering driving her sword between his shoulder blades but thinking better of it and turning to walk into the cabin instead. Pulling on a mask of indifference to hide her anger.  
"I need to you go ashore tomorrow." Francis turned to smile over her shoulder as she spoke, giving no hint that she had just been planning to leave her behind.  
"Aye? What for?" She tilted her head questioningly as she dropped into her usual chair beside the desk and pulled the stopper out of a bottle of rum, taking a long drink while waiting to see what random item she came up with to send her to 'get'.  
"I left some of the jewellery we got from The Hammer Head with someone to get it valued. I need you to go get it." She walked over and sat on the edge of the table, stealing her bottle and taking a drink with a slight grin.  
"I don't trust any of the lads not to run off with it." She winked and passed the bottle back. Kris almost felt insulted. Francis could tell the value of any bit of shine one hundred paces away, that was a poor excuse to send her and they both knew it. None the less, she let a smirk pull onto her face and nodded.  
"Aye Captain."

While they played cards that night Kris was busy thinking. One, why was Francis planning to leave her here? Two, what could she do about it? Well one was simple, knowing Francis she probably just finally got bored or maybe worried that they were too close and Kris could be used against her, either way, two only had three options: tell her she knows and confront her, go along with it or beat her to it. Of all of those, beat her to it was backed by her anger and, as always, anger won out, she'd have to sneak out tonight.

Once Francis was asleep Kris carefully slipped out of bed, she'd been listening to the Captains even breathing for the past hour or so to make sure she was definitely sleeping and now she was certain she could make her move. Carefully, she collected her clothes from the various places they'd been thrown around the room and pulled her boots on. Once dressed she moved silently to Francis's desk and took the money pouch that sat there, it was simple change in comparison to the amount of loot filling the rest of the ship but it would be enough to keep her going for a fair time in Tortuga. That was all she needed but on her way to the door something caught her eye. With a small smirk she stepped over to it and removed her sword from her hip, placing it down onto the table and picking up Francis's. The Bloody Thorn. It really was stunningly beautiful, the ornate hilt held a blood red ruby while the entire length of the blade was engraved with a thorn vine, when covered in blood it really was a fearsome sight. With a slight grin toward the sleeping captain she attached the sword onto her belt and walked out, keeping her hand over the ruby as she crossed the deck to hide which sword it was. Smith was sat beside the ramp and shot her a confused look as she approached  
"I'm off to get something for Francis before we leave. It's almost her birthday." She winked with a smile and Smith nodded his approval.  
"I won't tell her." He grinned and she smiled in thanks.  
"Be back before sunrise." With that she turned and walked casually off of the ship, letting herself fade into the dark shadows of the late night streets before taking off at full speed toward a place she knew she'd be safe. Francis would soon wake up without her there; she was always tossing around in her sleep and for some unknown reason always seemed to wake up if she moved out of kicking range.

She saw the sign and grinned in memory of the last time she entered this tavern, The Faithful Bride used to be her home and now she hoped it would help her out again. Thankfully Maria was still behind the bar when she walked in, a little tired from her run but other than that she guessed looked normal.  
"Kris! It's good t' see ye darlin'" Maria beamed at her from across the bar and Kris grinned in response.  
"Great to see you too love. How's business?" She sat down, deciding a slow approach would be easier but knowing that if she took too long Francis would catch her.  
"It's great, if ye couldn't tell." She laughed and waved a hand to the heavy crowd of drunken people that filled the room.  
"Glad t' hear it. I was wonderin' if you could do me a favour darlin' I'm in a bit of trouble." She gave a slight pleading look and Maria looked worried.  
"What d' ye need?" She seemed a little wary but definitely more worried than anything else.  
"I need you to hide me. Just until the Rose leaves port. I'll pay you for the room and everythin' as always, just don't tell anyone I'm here." She grinned mischievously and Maria laughed.  
"Been up t' mischief have ye? Alright darlin' ye can have one o' the staff rooms 'till they leave. Even if they search the place they won't be checkin' them. C'mon, I'll show ye." She smiled and headed to a door at the back of the room, Kris grinned and followed her.

The room was a little small and a little dark but it would save her from Francis.  
"If they do search back here, move the boards in the back of that cupboard. There's a place t' hide. Y' never know if the navy might come knockin'." She winked and Kris chuckled.  
"Aye. Thanks for this love, you're a gem." She smiled and Maria chuckled.  
"Thank me when they're gone darlin'. You want some dinner?" She placed her hands on her hips and Kris nodded.  
"That'd be great love, I'll be here a while so I'll pay at the end of the month as always." Kris smirked and Maria nodded before leaving. In truth, convenience wasn't the only reason she was paying later, Maria was a good person but she cared more about getting paid than much else, if she sold Kris out now, she wouldn't get paid and that meant her mouth was now shut tighter than a prison cell.

Sure enough, the theft of her family heirloom had driven Francis completely insane, she and her crew came thundering into the tavern the next morning and pinned Maria against a wall while demanding to know if 'that lying, thieving snake Kuris' was here. Maria, true to her word, shook her head and looked ready to burst out crying from fear until they'd searched all of the rooms and discovered nothing. Once they were gone Kris grinned and paid the woman an extra tip for keeping her secret. Not long later The Rose left port and Kris moved into a normal room, going straight back to her life before becoming Quartermaster of The Rose. She sat in the tavern most nights, playing cards with drunken men and winning against nearly all. Her years playing Francis had made her skills even sharper so it was now a rare day that she lost.

A month after the 'incident' with The Rose she was unfortunate enough to win against a rather short tempered pirate who proceeded to tip the table over, swing out his sword and accuse her of cheating. With a heavy sigh she stood up and pulled The Bloody Thorn from its scabbard. She'd only fought with it once or twice since leaving the Rose but it was roughly the same weight as her old katana so it wasn't too hard to get used to.  
"First blood then love, I'm in no mood for killin' today." She gave a slight smirk and saw his eyes flick to the sword she held, a wary look clear on his face for a second before he looked back to her and lunged. She dodged the attack easily but he was clearly a good fighter himself since he was quickly back and swinging his sword for her shoulder, she blocked with her own and grinned at the thought of a decent fight for once.

They fought hard for a long time, more than once she almost got him and at the same time he almost left her a few scars too. Eventually another sword cut over theirs and stopped their fight, she turned to its owner and found herself faced with a calm looking pirate, he held up a hand and she paused, still on guard in case it was a trick.  
"We'll be here 'till judgement day at this rate lass. What's yer name?" He slid his sword away and stood expectantly. She glanced at the man she'd fought with and found all anger gone from his face. She arched an eyebrow and put her own sword back into its scabbard.  
"Kuris. And yours?" Se folded her arms across his chest and he raised his eyebrows in slight surprise.  
"Kris Kuris? You've been busy aroun' Singapore, I heard Sao Feng was ready to go after you 'imself. 'm Captain John Crow. Captain of The Raven." He grinned and held his hand out, she smirked and took it.  
"Well y'know, just couldn't resist. Nice name." She held back a chuckle and he laughed.  
"Blame me father fer tha'. Ye lookin' to join a crew?" He tipped the table back upright and Kris looked at him carefully for a second. He was quite young, clean shaven, light brown hair that was clearly bleached by the sun, well built and dressed in a simple leather vest and breaches. Clearly a seasoned sailor and so far a relatively well mannered one but there was a dark glint to his eye that made her a little wary. Then again, she was already bored of land.  
"Aye, you got a position open?" She sat down at the newly righted table and nodded to Maria to bring her a new bottle of rum since the sailor she'd beaten had smashed hers when he flipped the table.  
"Might do, what's yer past experience?" He sat down across from her as Maria arrived with more run, passing a bottle each to the pair of them before leaving with a smile.  
"Six years. Three years aboard The Black Pearl as Cabin boy, three on The Bloody Rose as Quartermaster." She took a long drink to hide her smirk at his expression when she mentioned the Pearl.  
"The Black Pearl?" He spoke quietly and she chuckled.  
"Before Barbossa took over. I sailed under Captain Jack Sparrow." She couldn't help the slight edge of pride in her voice when she spoke of Jack and he seemed to relax greatly at this news.  
"I see, well me Quartermaster just became me First Mate so I suppose ye could 'ave his job. Just don't be stealin' me sword." He grinned and nodded to The Thorn and she chuckled.  
"Don't try and leave me somewhere without warnin' and we'll be fine love." She smirked and he nodded.  
"We 'ave a deal there lass. Ye have a couple days t' get yerself sorted out. We're havin' the rudder seen to. Got damaged in a storm." He looked annoyed at the memory and she nodded.  
"I'll be seein' you soon then, Captain." She grinned and he smiled slightly in return before standing up and leaving, the man she guessed was, one of his sailors trailing behind. Feeling pretty proud of herself, she relaxed into her seat and waited for her next challenger, hopefully she wouldn't get two job offers in one night.

_**Weird paced chapter I know. Working on that but there's several years yet before that start of the first film, don't want to dwell too much xD this is going t be a long fic.**_


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